


Tis But a Flesh Wound

by DarlingSpade



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Auror Harry Potter, F/M, Past Hermione Granger/Ron Weasley, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Romance, Ron Weasley Bashing, Slow Build
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-13
Updated: 2020-11-13
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:13:17
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 17,580
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27540580
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DarlingSpade/pseuds/DarlingSpade
Summary: An accident at the Quidditch Pitch accelerates an already blossoming relationship.
Relationships: Hermione Granger/Draco Malfoy
Kudos: 68





	Tis But a Flesh Wound

  
  
Hermione was never the biggest fan of Quidditch. She loved to watch Harry and Ron play, but it was out of support of her friends rather than for the support of the game. It's why she didn't completely know why she wandered to the Quidditch pitch to read her book today. It was quite a large book, so it would probably take her at least 3 hours to get through. Normally she'd cozy up in the room that belongs to the Head Girl and Head Boy of Hogwarts, but she didn't particularly like the Head Boy. He was some arrogant seventh year that she hadn't known from the year before her. His name is Jeremiah Greenwich and he had supposedly transferred to Hogwarts from Durmstrang. He was actually one of Victor Krum's friends, and when he had visited Hogwarts in their fourth year he had taken a liking to the place. It just happened to work out for him that his father needed to move for his job as he was a muggle, and so it meant Hogwarts was closer to where they lived. With him being a sixth year when Hermione was supposed to be in her seventh-though that became a gap year which made her return the next year-he and her ended up in the same year together, even though she's older. He was supposedly a brilliant wizard, though he still couldn't give Hermione a run for her money.  
  
With Jeremiah being so intelligent, McGonagal had decided to make him Head Boy since Ron and many other Prefects from her year never returned to Hogwarts, and Hermione had taken back her position. Not many others returned to Hogwarts from her year, as technically none of them had to. Only Draco and Blaise returned from her year, as most of the kids in her year were forced to go to Hogwarts when Voldemort was in power. However Ginny and Luna did not return for their seventh year after finishing their sixth, as Ginny went on to work professionally with Quidditch, and Luna had decided to help her father in running The Quibbler. With those two gone, Hermione didn't really have a lot of friends left at Hogwarts. It was also kind of weird being known by the earlier years as one of the people responsible for destroying Voldemort, and of course, being Harry Potter's best friend.  
  
With this newly found fame, she found it nice to avoid the breakfast, lunch, and dinner rushes when she could. And it meant avoiding most crowds whenever possible, which she supposes is one of the things that drew her to the Quidditch field this particular day. The Hufflepuff team was about halfway through their allotted practice time, which meant no eyes would be watching her as she slipped into one of the stands and sat in the right upper corner. The Hufflepuff team was rather good this year, but their practices were still never as busy as the other houses. Though their popularity seemed to depend on what day they were held on, the most popular being Tuesday for some reason. This is also why Hermione chose Sunday to visit their practice as there were very few watchers in the stands. As she glanced up at the players every once in a while, reading, she remembered the weird soothing sensation that the sound of a Quidditch practice had. It was mainly running drills so there wasn't a lot of yelling. If something needed to be discussed it was done one-to-one unless it was a team issue, but half of the Hufflepuff team was a relatively quiet group, and so there wasn't much of that, to begin with.  
  
It was later in the day when Hermione had lost track of time and hadn't noticed the Slytherin team move onto the pitch and start their practice. However, she had noted that she started to hear more voices than usual, but ignored it and figured someone had gone onto the pitch. Only Hufflepuff had a consistent schedule, and she had noticed that the other teams changed around almost every week. Hermione was also so engrossed in her book that she didn't notice Draco Malfoy slip into the stands as well. However, Draco didn't notice her either as he B lined to the front corner on the left side of the stands.  
  
Draco had returned to Hogwarts to escape everything outside of Hogwarts. With the shit that his family was in, the last thing he wanted was to be couped up at home with his mother and father. Frankly, he loved them as any son would, but he really just wanted as much distance from them as possible right now. So instead here he was, watching his friend Blaise during one of his weekly practices. He was only a keeper, but he supposed it was pretty exciting. Draco hadn't been that great at Quidditch as it didn't seem to come naturally to him, but he did enjoy the game.  
  
Time passed by and so did practice. Draco watched on and made comments playfully jabbing the players when they made a mistake, but it was few and far in between as the team was pretty good. He also directed them towards the players he liked rather than the ones he didn't, as insulting them came too easy for him, unfortunately. However, he was working hard to turn over a new leaf, and that meant not harassing or bullying anyone anymore. Occasionally Blaise would yell over remarks to him and he'd laugh back at his friend. Blaise was one of the few people he could talk honestly to, he was the only one who seemed to understand or empathize with what he went through.   
  
Draco had started to notice the team's Beaters starting to get more out of control. He didn't remember their names, but they were two fifth years that were always messing around and causing trouble. It's like they wanted to be the new Fred and George but nobody really liked them. The two were good players though, and somehow they knew how to work well with a team. The two seemed to keep meeting together and looking over at the stands Draco was sitting at. He figured they were just saying some meaningless insults about him. Draco wasn't very liked by most of the school and for good reason. He knows he wasn't the greatest person, and he doesn't deserve to be forgiven for the things he's said and done to the other students at the school. So when one of the two Beaters had lined up to hit the ball to the other, he wasn't surprised when a bludger came flying towards the stands where he was at.  
  
"You missed idiots!" Draco called out this time. After trying to hit him they deserved it. But as Draco followed the ball he realized that while it wasn't going towards him, it was going straight for a familiar person sitting in the stands above him. "Granger watch out!" He said instinctively.   
  
Hermione had heard Draco shout the first time and it had caused her to look up at him in annoyance. But when his eyes met hers and she registered the next words he shouted, she barely had time to block the bludger with her book. The force of the bludger sent Hermione crashing back into the wooden stands behind her. Draco found himself rushing up towards her but he didn't completely understand why. The two were on better terms now as being paired up in Potions made them work together, but he still couldn't consider them friends yet as much as he would like to be. He always seemed to find himself gravitating towards her, and so for some reason watching her get hit with the bludger sent his heart into a panic.  
  
As he reached her, he had heard the swoosh of a broom as Blaise and one of the other chasers joined them in the stands. The two beaters were being scolded by the captain and the other players were keeping their distance but looking on in worry. Draco felt his heartache when he knelt down to look at her. Hermione was out cold and her book was lying near her stomach with one hand still touching it. The three of them carefully moved some of the debris caused by the crash and noticed that Hermione's forehead was red and her nose was bleeding, though that was probably because it was broken.   
  
"Shit." The team captain had swooped in to look at the damage. "We're going to have to go talk to McGonagall and Slughorn. They need to be notified immediately."  
"What about Granger?" Blaise seemed upset.  
"The girl?"  
"Yes, idiot."  
  
"Zambini, watch it. She needs to be taken to the infirmary." He glanced at Draco. "Can you take her Malfoy? There's a procedure the team has to go through since this was practice."   
  
"Fine, but couldn't you show some sympathy?" Draco was annoyed.  
  
"She's only different because she's famous. I could care less. Just take her will you? C'mon Zambini." The captain turned and flew off. Blaise frowned and looked back down at Hermione.  
  
"I'll help you get her down from the stands, but do you think you can handle it from there? I don't want to deal with his meltdown if I skip out on this." Blaise pulled out his wand.  
  
"Yeah, I can do that. I understand." Draco followed suit and whilst one summoned a stretcher the other levitated Hermione and placed her onto it. Draco paused to grab her book and set it at her feet. The book looked pretty crushed, but he didn't want to risk ruining it by trying to fix it. _I'm sure she can do it on her own._ Blaise then levitated the stretcher while Draco ran down the stairs to get to the bottom of the stand so Blaise could pass Hermione off. Blaise carefully hovered her off the stand into the open air and down towards Draco who in turn added his own magic and finished lowering her so she was hovering just above the ground.   
  
"Alright, gotta go mate! I'll talk to you later!" Blaise called down to him and Draco nodded in acknowledgment. He glanced back down at Hermione and felt his stomach drop as he couldn't stand to see her in this state.   
  
It didn't take long to make it to the infirmary, although he did get quite a lot of stares and whispers as he passed people carrying the girl. He had made the decision to cover Hermione with a cloth to hide her from view so people wouldn't spread any rumors about her. All they would know is Draco Malfoy took someone to the infirmary, but he would try to avoid them knowing he took Hermione Granger there. Luckily no other students seemed to be in the hospital wing today, so Draco was able to move Hermione to the bed and pull a curtain for privacy in peace. Madam Pomfrey had shown up when she heard the sound of the curtain and quickly demanded to know the situation. Draco simply answered all of her questions and explained the situation that had happened. After fixing Hermione's nose with the flick of her wand, she had cleaned her up and asked him to wait.  
  
"I'll need to see if she received any more damage to her head or brain when she wakes up and we'll go from there." Madam Pomfrey finished cleaning up the side table. "If you could stay and wait until she wakes up that'd be appreciated. So you can let me know when she wakes up." Draco simply nodded. _Of course, I'll stay._ "I'll need to talk to the Headmistress, but I'm sure since the team followed the proper steps then she already knows." Madam Pomfrey moved to close the other curtain to leave them in privacy. "Thank you for bringing her in. Let me know if Miss Granger starts acting weird or maybe a fever develops in her sleep. Just keep an eye on her please."  
  
"Will do." Draco nodded to her again and was then left alone with Hermione surrounded by a curtain. He looked down at the girl who he had grown up teasing and felt confused. He wasn't supposed to be close to this girl. He shouldn't even be allowed near her after all of the pain he and his family had caused her. Still, she had forgiven him. They had kinda talked about it, though never deeply. But she had accepted him as an equal and allowed him to exist by her side.  
  
Draco moved his chair so he sat up near Hermione's head. Her hair was laid across the pillow spread out on both sides. She had put it up into a ponytail but it had somewhat loosened in the mix of everything. He smiled looking down at her and finding the beauty that was there even with her eyes closed. Her chest lifted and fell softly as if in a pleasant dream and not in a bludger-induced-sleep. His heart always ached whenever he looked at her and it always made him afraid for what it meant. Draco hadn't dealt with feelings like this before. Sure, he had liked a few girls here and there, but it was always a physical or sexual attraction and nothing more. But with Hermione, it was different. Draco sighed and leaned back into his chair to stare up at the ceiling.  
  
"This is so weird," Draco mumbled to himself. "What kind of mess did we find ourselves in?" Draco glanced over at the still slumbering girl before looking back to the ceiling. "Our only time hanging out outside of class and it's like this." He scuffed his foot against the floor and sighed.  
  
It was around twenty minutes into Draco fidgeting and stealing long looks at Hermione before the girl started to stir. He felt his face flush when she moved as he was gazing at her and quickly moved over to pull the string and ring the bell that led into Madam Pomfrey's office. He stood up and moved away from the bed as Hermione stirred and moved to sit up.   
  
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." The words sorta fell out of his mouth even though he had intended to stay quiet.  
"Draco?" Hermione half mumbled out before grabbing her head in her hand.  
"Told you." Draco murmured.  
  
Soon after Madam Pomfrey pulled the curtain aside and entered the space by her bed. "Miss Granger, how are you feeling and what do you remember?"  
  
Hermione winced a little bit as she finished sitting up much to Madam Pomfrey's physical display. "Well, my head is pounding, and my body doesn't feel all that great either. However, the pain doesn't feel unbearable, just like I got hit and knocked over." She moved her hand back into her lap. "As for what I remember..." A blush seemed to rise to her cheeks. "Well, I was reading my book when I heard Draco shout. And then he shouted again and I realized there was a bludger headed towards me. So I brought up my book." She paused. "And now I'm here." Hermione looked up at her.  
  
"Well, alright. It fits the story Mr. Malfoy told. And luckily you seem to remember everything that happened." Draco looked away awkwardly and shrugged when Hermione glanced at him. "I already looked you over and nothing was broken other than your nose, which I already fixed. You seem to be speaking fine, and your memory seems okay. I can give you medicine for the pain and for the swelling, but I'm afraid your forehead may end up with a nasty bruise." She pulled out two labeled jars from her pockets and placed them on the side table. "However I'm sure you know the spell in case you want to cover it up. You're a fine witch so I trust you."  
  
Hermione blushed and nodded. "Thank you Madam Pomfrey."  
"If it's okay I'd like Mr. Malfoy to escort you around for the remainder of the day." The nurse said very nonchalantly.  
"What?" The two blushed and looked up at her in confusion.  
"Professor Slughorn tells me that you get along well in Potions, so I figure I can trust him to watch you for the day." She smiled simply and started pulling the curtains aside.  
"Yes, I suppose, but Madam Pomfrey, why do I need an escort?" Hermione was confused.  
"In case you fall or your head rushes. Anything that may cause a collapse. I want to make sure someone is with you. If nothing happens in 24 hours all should be well."  
"Oh, I see." Hermione took the pills Madam Pomfrey was now handing to her with water.  
"I trust this is fine with you Mr. Malfoy?" Madam Pomfrey's brow raised.  
  
Draco felt heat rise to his cheeks. "Uh, yeah. It's okay." He shifted under her gaze.  
  
"Fantastic. Well, you're free to go." Madam Pomfrey did a little motion with her hand before turning and exiting. However, she paused before reaching her office and pointed a finger at the student. "You better be by her side 24/7! Unless it's outrageously inappropriate I want you looking out for her." She then smiled and turned away.  
  
The Slytherin suddenly felt very self-conscious being left alone with Hermione. He glanced over at her and she also seemed to be avoiding his gaze. _I'm starting to regret this already._ He took a moment to take a deep breath in and then let it out. "Well Granger, plan to stay in bed all day?" He smirked at her.  
  
Hermione's face flushed as she stubbornly got to her feet as quickly as she could. This then resulted in a massive head rush which caused her to stumble and in turn made Draco reflexively reach out towards her. But Hermione had managed to catch herself, so Draco took his hands back.  
  
"I was just joking, Granger." Draco quipped.  
"Oh shut up Malfoy!" Hermione glared daggers at him.  
He shrugged and laughed at her. "Ease up Granger. You're so tense." He smirked. "I could help you with that y'know." _Why did I say that!  
_Hermione's face turned scarlet and she threw her pillow at him which he in-turn caught. "Malfoy buzz off!"  
  
"Now we both know I can't do that or Pompei will blow her top." He shrugged and put the pillow back on the bed. "I'm just trying to poke fun Granger, please don't take me so seriously." He put his hands in his pockets and gestured towards the door. "I imagine you don't want to stay here forever. Especially in those." He gestured to her dirty and slightly torn up clothes. "I'm sure you'd magic them away but magic can't be practiced by students in here. And I imagine miss Head Girl won't be breaking any rules now will she?" Draco teased.  
  
Hermione huffed and rolled her eyes. "Oh shut it. You're supposed to be a Prefect so act like one." She walked past him and he glanced back at Madam Pomfrey's office before following after her.   
  
"I believe escorting our Head Girl around Hogwarts counts as Prefect duty given the severity of injury she sustained." He whispered into her ear as he kept pace with her bustling footsteps. "And you're welcome for me hiding you from view when I carried you here. I tried to avoid you suffering more attention than you usually receive." Hermione paused and then looked up at him. Draco felt nervous suddenly under her gaze. He had been managing the bravado that he was used to, but whenever she looked at him, it didn't come as easy.  
  
"Thank you, for that." Hermione paused again and took in and let out a deep breath before turning to face him head-on. "And thanks for bringing me back as well. And warning me, and well, doing this." She met his eyes and he suddenly became very aware of his heartbeat. "You didn't have to, any of it. Without your warning, well... I'd probably be in a loss worse shape. So thank you." She gave him a small smile and he felt his stomach doing backflips.  
  
"Yeah, whatever. It's no big deal." He tilted his head away from her and glanced away. "You're welcome I guess."  
"Why'd you warn me anyways?" They had started walking again once Hermione noticed how it grew kinda awkward between them.  
"I don't know? Instinct I guess? It's not like I hate you or wish any harm to you, y'know?" Draco shrugged and crossed his arms.  
"Thanks again I suppose." Hermione smiled.  
"You shouldn't have to thank me for being a decent person. Any friend would have done it."  
"Are we friends now?" Hermione smiled and turned to him.  
  
Draco felt his face flush and he turned to her shaking his head. "Oh no, that's not what I said!"  
"Draco Malfoy are we finally friends?" Hermione seemed really bubbly about this and Draco could not handle her excitement.  
"Finally?" He was very confused and overwhelmed.  
  
Hermione just nodded and noticed they were blocking the pathway, so she started walking again. "Well yeah. I thought we were really starting to get along in potions. I'm sure you've noticed that our pairing has always earned the highest marks. We work really well together, and I think I've actually started to get along with you and enjoy your company."  
  
"Jee, thanks."  
  
"I just meant, things weren't always the best with us, but now I think they've gotten better." The two had made their way up to the wing where the Head Boy and Head Girl Quarters were. The two Heads slept in their own separate dormitories located near or in between whatever houses the two belonged to for that year. This time it was located between the Gryffindor and Ravenclaw towers. "I've kinda been waiting for you to mention something because I've really been debating on whether you liked me or not." _Wait, that's not what I mean!_ "I mean- like as a person or like a friend! Obviously not like, like. I mean, fuck, you know what I mean right?" Draco smiled a bit as she flustered through her words. "I just... there aren't that many seventh years this term, as you've noticed I'm sure. And the Gryffindor's are amazing, but they're all younger than me. Most of my friends didn't come back, so it's just nice to be able to talk to someone my age and someone I know." Draco felt a warmth radiating in his chest and he smiled at her.  
  
"I understand what you mean." He nodded and leaned back against the wall. Hermione awkwardly followed suit as this is how she imagined other people would react to this behavior. "I only really have Blaise here that I get along with. Pansy always follows after me but I don't particularly like her." Hermione took a mental note of this. "And it's been really refreshing to have someone other than Blaise talk to me like a normal person or not shy away from me. Honestly, I'd argue I understand what you feel like in terms of all of the attention you get, though I'm sure most of mine is the negative kind." Draco let out a deep breath. "You've been really fun to hang out with and talk to, but it's hard sometimes when I just feel guilty about enjoying your company." Draco blushed. He wasn't expecting that one to slip out.  
  
Hermione smiled softly and nudged him with her shoulder. "I don't think you should feel guilty. I mean, why should we both feel that way?" He turned to look down at her as he was taller than her by about six inches. "I've felt guilty about enjoying your company too. Gosh, I mean everyone I'm friends with aren't really fond of you either, as I'm sure you know."  
  
"And rightfully so." He commented.  
  
"And Ron definitely hates your guts, whereas Harry just sorta doesn't trust you. But, yet with all of these opinions, mine is still that I like you and I think that you're a good person." Hermione smiled up at him. "I think you might have been driven towards a bad path, but ultimately you chose the right side. And I think that's enough to tell me who you are. You were strong-willed enough to go against Voldemort, even if it meant you and your family might be killed." Hermione looked back to glance at her shoes. "And I think that's really brave.  
  
Draco felt like he could kiss this woman then and there, but he pushed those thoughts and feelings down and instead pulled Hermione into a hug. Luckily no one was around to see as they both didn't need the gossip. "Thank you, Hermione." A blush rose to Hermione's cheeks and she felt her chest get warm. She couldn't help but notice the small trace of cinnamon and cologne when she hugged Draco and kinda didn't want it to go away. But Draco pulled away from her and smiled at her.  
  
"You called me Hermione."  
"That is your name," Draco smirked.  
"Yeah, but you've never called me Hermione before!"  
"Not to your face, no. I haven't." He smiled and shrugged. "C'mon, you should go into your dorm and get changed." Draco gestured to the door.  
"Aren't you supposed to escort me?"  
"Granger, boys can't enter girl dormitories. Surely you know this?"  
  
"Yeah but there's a common room. So you can go that far." Draco blushed while Hermione whispered something into the door and it unlocked and opened. "So, c'mon. It's not that big of a deal. Not breaking any rules." Hermione stepped into the space and Draco followed in after her. The common room was strange as it was a mixture of red, gold, bronze, and blue. Then the colours separated on the wall where it designated where presumably the two's spaces were. Hermione on the right and Jeremiah on the left.  
  
"An interesting colour palette," Draco commented before moving to sit on the red sofa.  
"Yeah, I'm just surprised the colours blended so well." Hermione nodded and moved towards her half of the common room.  
"I don't know, I think it could use some silver and green."  
  
"It probably could." Hermione smiled before reaching for her doorknob and opening the door. "I'm just planning on grabbing some clothes and then heading up to the prefect's bathroom. I figured it would be less embarrassing than the normal shower rooms since it's more private and there will be fewer people in our business."  
  
Draco smirked and winked at her. "Finally making a move Granger?"  
  
Hermione's face flushed slightly and she glared at him. "Oh please, you know what I meant! You're allowed to go to the Prefects bathroom and you're stuck following me anyways so why would we go to the public-"  
  
"Joking Granger. Just joking." He smiled wider and Hermione flushed harder.  
"I'll be right back." She then disappeared into her room and left Draco relaxed on the couch.  
  
The main door opened and caused Draco to get on his guard. He recognized the man who walked in as the Head Boy. He understood he was in Ravenclaw but didn't know any much other than that. He had seen his face around, however.   
  
"Oi. How did y'ou get in 'ere? Get out." He frowned and pointed towards the door.  
"I came here with Granger and I'm a Prefect. Calm down." Draco felt uneasy from this guy's demeanor.  
"Watch y'our tone. Oi! Herminny!" He called out.  
  
"I'm right here." Hermione rounded the corner annoyed. Although Draco could see a bag full of bathing supplies in her arms. "Jeremiah he's fine. We're partnering for a project." Jeremiah glared at Draco before returning to Hermione with slightly softer eyes.  
  
"Fine." He turned and trudged away back into his room.  
  
"Sorry about him. He's a bit odd." Hermione said as politely as she could.  
"You mean he's kinda a git?" Draco drawled and stood up.  
  
Hermione let out a sigh and nodded. "I'm not very fond of him, but he is rather smart." Hermione shrugged and then seemed to notice something. "Oh, what about your bathing stuff? Shouldn't we run and get it?" She asked.  
  
"Ah, probably yes. But now, we're in a common-room." Draco smiled and in-turn starting _accio_ -ing things to him and eventually, he had gathered all of his belongings into a bag. "Ready to go." He gave Hermione a grin and she gave him a small smile in return. The two then exited the Head Boy and Girl quarters before starting their way towards the fifth floor. "No one should be around really since curfew is going to be into effect soon."  
  
"Yeah, that's what I was hoping for. I'd like to avoid lots of people and all of their questions if I could." Hermione sighed but still kept the skip in her step as they both reached the statue of Boris the Bewildered. Draco murmured the password to the bathroom and they both quietly stepped inside. When the door shut behind them they suddenly became extremely aware of their situation. Luckily for them, it was rather dim in the bathroom because the two were both scarlet with embarrassment.  
  
"Well, I'm going to go undress over there." Draco sorta laughed and moved over towards one of the bathroom stalls. When he closed the door Hermione moved over towards the stall closest to the bath. She quickly started running the water and made sure to add bubbles since they'd be bathing together. She wanted to make sure everything got covered up. _What am I doing? You're going to be naked right next to Draco Malfoy!  
  
_ The tub filled up quickly given its size and the number of faucets, so Hermione hurriedly undressed before taking her towel and bringing it over to the side of the tub. She tested the water before tucking herself in and making sure to submerge enough of everything. _This is insane. This is insane. This is insane!_  
  
"You in Granger? I've got my towel on my waist but I'll need to remove it to get in." Draco called from his stall.  
  
"Uh, yeah! You're good. When you wanna get in I can turn away." At Hermione's voice, he stepped out and moved over towards her. She couldn't help but notice the serious abs he must have been rocking underneath his robes this entire time. Draco usually wore fitted clothing, but nothing tight enough to showcase the actual physique that he had.  
  
"I mean feel free to look Granger if you'd like. I'm not shy." Draco teased and Hermione went scarlet before turning away. Draco laughed and removed his towel before getting in. "I'm just teasing again. It's really easy to get you wound up." He smirked but noticed Hermione was still turned away from him. "I'm in by the way. And covered in bubbles. No peep-shows here." He smiled and Hermione slowly turned her head back over to look at him.  
  
The two kinda just awkwardly stared at each other for a moment from opposite sides of the pool-like bath. They both just seemed like they weren't entirely sure what to do. Hermione glanced away from him and started messing with the bubble around her.  
  
"Oh, how's your head doing? The hot water might not be great for it." Draco commented.  
  
"I think I'm doing alright. I might be a little light-headed but I'm sure it's okay." Hermione sorta shrugged it off and kept looking at the bubbles. Draco frowned at her answer and in turn started moving over towards her. Hermione quickly caught on and started backing away from him. "W-what are you doing?"  
  
"Moving over to you what does it look like?" He ignored her obvious discomfort and sat right beside her. His cheeks were slightly red at the proximity, but Hermione's were scarlet. "I'm supposed to be keeping an eye on you for twenty-four hours. It's not normal to feel light-headed in a bath. It means your dehydrated or in your case have a head injury." He poked her forehead with his finger. "So if you get any worse I want to be by you to help."   
  
"I'm fine, really." Hermione crossed her arms over her chest.  
"We'll see by the end. But for now, I'm not leaving this spot." Draco shrugged.  
"Then I could just move?"  
"I'll follow you then." Draco glanced at her before glancing away.  
  
Hermione huffed but didn't complain after that. The two sat in mostly silence and only talked for when they needed to communicate when to look away as they washed. Hermione started washing her hair under one of the faucets and Draco accidentally glanced at her when looking for his comb. He only saw her back and shoulders, but it was enough to make him go red with embarrassment. He quickly turned away and just decided to wait to look for his comb. However, Draco had also felt his heart sink because he had also noticed the scar on Hermione's right arm. _I could have tried to do something. I could have tried to stop her._ Hermione had finished rinsing out her hair and put it up in a large hair-clip. _If I only had the courage to stand up to my aunt... maybe she wouldn't have that scar.  
  
_ Hermione glanced over and noticed Draco's posture as he was turned around. She couldn't help but blush at his back muscles, but at the same time, she felt that his posture seemed rigid and it really distracted her. "Hey, are you okay?" She moved behind him.  
  
Draco turned around and blushed when he realized her proximity. "Yeah, why?" He instinctually backed up and felt the cool tile against his back. However, he noticed that the girl in front of him obviously didn't believe him. Hermione crossed her arms and Draco turned his gaze away from her when he caught the slightest glimpse of the top of her chest.   
  
"I don't believe you," Hermione stated.  
"I've noticed."  
"So what happened?" She questioned.  
"Nothing happened. It's in the past." Draco sighed.  
"What's in the past?" She pressed.  
  
"Hermione." Draco met her eyes and she felt a shiver run down her spine. He took a moment to realize what he was doing. He was about to shut her out and push her away from him, but he realized that that's not what he really wanted. The Slytherin took a moment to collect himself before turning away from her again. "I saw your scar okay? The one on your arm." Hermione's eye's widened with realization. "I just couldn't help but think and blame y'know?" Hermione slipped away so that she was sitting next to Draco.  
  
"What do you mean?" She said quietly.  
"I mean, I should have done something and maybe you wouldn't have that scar right now." He mumbled and watched another bubble pop.  
"And have gotten killed? Or maybe your parents? I don't blame you."  
"At least I wouldn't have been a coward." Draco rolled his eyes.  
"Oh shut up. You not ratting us out is good enough for me."  
"Granger-" Hermione cut him off.  
"No! Shut up. You don't get to sit here and feel guilty about this. I'm not letting you." Hermione turned on him and got back in front of him but closer this time.  
"W-what are you doing?" Draco went red and turned his head away from her before placing both of his hands on the side of the bathtub's rim.  
  
"The three of us knew what we were getting into when he decided to take on Voldemort." Draco kept his eyes away from her but she could tell he was listening. "When we got captured by those Snatchers and they thought it might be Harry, I thought we were dead. I wasn't expecting to walk out of there alive. But you helped us. You gave us enough time to figure out a plan so that we could survive." Hermione sunk lower into the water and backed off a little bit. "If you would have just told them that it was Harry... we probably would have never won the war."  
  
Draco slowly mustered up the resolve to look at her. The bubbles were starting to diminish, but there were still enough to cover them both comfortably. "Hermione you make me sound better than I was."  
  
"But I don't. I'm just saying what I was thinking and what happened." She met his eyes. "I'm sure you wish you could have saved me from Bellatrix, but what good would that have done if you tried to stop her? You probably would have ended up dead. Family didn't mean anything to her and it sure doesn't mean anything to Voldemort." Draco frowned as he couldn't find anything to rebuke her statements. "So, stop feeling guilty about my scar. You're not the reason that I have it." Hermione slumped back and shifted away from Draco again.   
  
"Whatever you say, Granger." Draco let out a deep breath before tucking his arms back into the water.   
"You're a good person Draco. Even if you've made some mistakes in the past." Hermione shifted to sit next to him again.  
"You called me Draco." He turned to look at her.  
"That is your name." She smiled and met his eyes. He glanced at her lips before turning away again.  
"How's your head doing?" He tried to distract himself from her proximity which he was extremely aware of.  
  
"I'm doing okay. I still feel the same as before though." Hermione shrugged. "Although we probably should head out. We've both finished washing up anyways." Hermione moved away from him and over to where her towel was located near them. Draco looked at his towel that he had left across the room but then back to Hermione.   
  
Draco glanced down at himself before glancing back to the girl who was preparing to get out of the water. "Hey Hermione, I don't want to make this awkward, but I plan to watch you get out." Hermione and Draco both flushed red. "I-I mean, n-not like that. I'm not trying to pull any moves here or make it awkward. Just, sometimes when people get out of hot baths it's not uncommon to get a head rush." He glanced away from her again when she turned to look at him. "It's just, with you feeling light-headed already, there's just a high chance it could happen and I don't want you falling and hurting yourself."   
  
Hermione paused to think about what he was saying and Draco continued. "If there was any other way to keep an eye on you and not see anything I would." Draco felt his cheeks burning and he only wished to be out of this situation. "Although I apologize in advance if I see anything."   
  
The Gryffindor sighed and paused to think again. Shortly after, she spoke. "I don't suppose you'll accept a no?"  
"Consent is everything Hermione, but this is one thing I'm genuinely worried about. So I'd really have to insist." Draco met her eyes.  
  
"I mean it's not going to be for long, so I guess it'll be okay. I know you're not trying to do anything indecent." _I kinda wish you would though. Just a little bit._ Hermione flushed at her own thoughts so that she rushed into speaking. "Just don't worry about it. Thank you for keeping an eye on me." Hermione turned around and Draco fixed his eyes on her upper back. "I'm gonna get out okay? My towels by the side, as soon as I'm out I can get it on."  
  
"Got it." Draco's face was red and he didn't expect it to return to normal any time soon. "Just stay crouched with your towel on until I get up there. When you stand we'll see if you're good. We don't want you falling back into the bath." Hermione nodded before getting out of the bath and staying crouched. Draco averted his eyes when he saw her butt was about to get out of the water and kept them averted. "Towel on?"  
  
"Yes. You're good." Hermione tucked the towel and held it.  
  
Draco glanced at her to make sure he couldn't see anything before getting out of the bath himself and then blushed. "Sorry, I forgot my towel was on the other side of the bath. Just don't turn around." Draco made sure he was behind her so he could prevent her from falling into the bath. "Okay, you're good to stand." Hermione stood, seemed fine for a moment, and then quickly swayed. On instinct, the blonde man reached forward to grab her arms and level her. "You good? Can you speak to me?"  
  
"Head hurts." Hermione kept her words short as her hand reached to her temple.   
  
"Alright, just stay like this for a minute, if it doesn't go away I'm gonna sit you down over by the wall and get you some water." Draco went to readjust his grip when suddenly Hermione swayed and then she suddenly went limp and Draco had to quickly shift to catch her completely as she fell back into him. "Hermione?" Draco quickly moved to lay her on the ground. "Hermione?" He tapped her cheek. _If it's not serious, she should wake up soon. Fainting only lasts from seconds to around a minute, I don't need to worry unless it's longer._ Draco reminded himself before moving over to grab his towel and wrap it around his waist. He moved back over to her and put his ear up to her mouth. _Still breathing evenly.  
  
_The worry didn't last long as Hermione quickly stirred. "Mmm." Her eyes slowly opened and she blinked a few times.  
"Don't sit up yet Hermione. Can you speak normally?" Draco asked.  
"Yeah, I think so." Hermione nodded.  
"Alright, that checks box one. I want you to sit up slowly and put your head in between your knees."  
  
Hermione nodded again before slowly sitting up. Then she followed suit and pulled her towel tighter before lowering her head to sit in between her knees. "How do you know all of this? Did Madam Pomfrey go over this with you?"  
  
"No, my mother has had a history with fainting. I picked up a few things." Draco shrugged. "I put a towel on by the way. In case that makes things less awkward."  
"It doesn't." She smiled.   
"Sorry that this is how everything went."  
"It's not like it's your fault."   
  
"Yeah, but I still feel embarrassed about being naked in front of you. And I can imagine the embarrassment of fainting naked in front of me." Draco shrugged. "Alright, feel any better?"  
  
"Mostly, yeah."  
  
"Alright. Go ahead and sit up normally. When you feel okay after that I want you to stand okay? I'll be there in case you faint again. But right now I'm gonna put my boxers on and get you some water." Hermione sat up slowly and nodded. He double-checked that she seemed to be okay sitting before moving over to where his clothes were located. He slipped into a stall and dried off before putting on his boxers and picking up his wand. He left his clothes hanging in case Hermione fell again or for some reason, she fell in. He didn't want to get his clothes wet or getting in the way in case of the worst-case-scenario.   
  
Draco used his wand to pull up a glass and fill it with fresh water. "Small sips."  
  
He handed it over to her and she took it and cradled it in her hands before following his instructions. "Why didn't you just get dressed?" Hermione asked before glancing away from him.  
  
"I didn't want you to get my clothes wet in case you fell, and I wanted to show off the goods." Draco joked and Hermione rolled her eyes. "You okay to stand?"  
Hermione nodded and Draco got behind her again in case her towel fell off. "Alright, you're good. Just go slow." Hermione slowly started to stand and Draco kept an eye on her head. She seemed to be okay. "Doin' alright?"  
  
"Yeah, my head feels okay now. Though I'm a little worried." Hermione shrugged.  
  
"Just take it easy when you get dressed. Call if you need anything." He gave her a smile before turning and disappearing back into the stall. Hermione did the same and took it slow. Draco had already dressed in a t-shirt and sweats for a few minutes before Hermione came from the corner where she was getting dressed. She wore a large black Hogwarts sweater and matching pajama shorts. Draco felt his stomach flip when she walked out. _She's so cute._ "You ready to go?"  
  
"Yeah." The two gathered their things in their bags before moving back over to the main door and peeking their heads out. "It's just past ten, so technically we shouldn't be out. Luckily we can get away from it because we're Prefects. Well, Head Girl and Prefect." Hermione and Draco slipped from the room and closed the door.  
  
"Hermione breaking rules and without the influence of her friends? Wow. I'm shocked." Draco teased.  
"I mean you're here aren't you?" She looked back at him and he blushed slightly. "Besides I can say I found you sneaking around." Hermione joked.  
  
"Yeah, always blame it on the Slytherin, sure." He drawled as they were walking back towards the Head dorms. Draco then had a realization. "Wait, Granger, am I staying at your dormitory?"   
  
Hermione blushed but nodded. "Yeah. I assume so." The two started their way up to the Seventh floor to make it back to the private dorms. The available empty space for the dorms wasn't able to be on the sixth floor this year, putting it exactly between the Ravenclaw common room on the fifth floor and the Gryffindor common room on the seventh. Instead, the Head Boy and Girl dorm was put where the most space was this year, which was on the Seventh floor away from the Gryffindor common room. "Shoot!" Hermione pulled Draco back against the wall and they saw the shadow of a cat cross in the other hallway. "If Mrs. Norris sees us we're goners. But she's blocking the hallway to my dorm."   
  
"Maybe so, but you know what else is on the seventh floor?" Draco smiled and grabbed Hermione's hand before running and dashing across the hallway until they made it to the hallways with Barnabas the Barmy's tapestry. "Alright." The two then ran three times back and forth and jumped when Mr.s Norris suddenly appeared on the opposite end of the hallway. "Shit, c'mon!" A wooden door had appeared on the wall and the two students quickly slipped behind it and into the room.  
  
"Ow! What did you ask for?" Hermione hit her arm against a wall and felt her back pressed up against another.  
"Just a place to hide." Draco had been pushed up against Hermione when the door had shut behind them.  
  
"Well, where are we? I can't see anything." Hermione felt to the sides of her and felt the walls were very close. "Is this a closet? Your back's against the door, isn't it? I can't go any farther back.  
  
"Yeah, it is." Draco reached up with his arm and searched for a string. "Found it." Draco pulled the string and suddenly light rained down to fill the small space. "You're right. We're in a closet. I guess maybe next time I should ask for a spacious place to hide.  
  
"It's uncomfortable but it's also only until Filch leaves." Hermione shrugged and kept herself pressed back against the wall. Draco was doing the same against the door to prevent their bodies from touching again. They were maybe three inches apart with how much space they had and Draco had kept his arm up and leaning on the wall whilst the other at his side whereas Hermione continued to touch the walls on either side of her. She glanced and noticed multiple sharp scars on Draco's left arm. They seemed to cross over the bottom of where the dark mark was scarred into his arm, but the mark seemed to cover them where they should overlap. "Hey, Draco?"  
  
"Yeah?" He looked down at her and met her eyes. She glanced away.  
"What happened to your arm? Besides the mark." She asked quietly.  
  
Draco heard her question nonetheless and brought it down to rest at his side. "Are you talking about the other scars?" He asked quietly. Hermione only nodded in realization because of how tense the air became. "I tried to cut it out. A few months after _he_ died. But I can't get rid of it, it's dark magic and it'll never go away."  
  
Hermione looked up at him and he met her eyes with his unwavering ones. "Are you okay?"  
"Obviously not Hermione if I did something like that," Draco stated.  
"Do you want to talk about it?"  
"Not particularly, but I should."  
"It was forced on you."  
"And yet I flaunted it to Albus Dumbledore before he died." He scoffed and it angered the girl  
"You were terrified and you never could have killed him."  
  
Draco's left arm shot out to the right side of Hermione's head as he pressed it against the wall. "I still tried to Hermione. It doesn't change anything just because I didn't succeed."  
  
"Dumbledore didn't want you to become a murderer! He knew in his heart that you were just a scared boy!" Hermione had flinched but held strong.  
"If he was so smart he should have kicked me out of Hogwarts before anything could happen!" Draco's voice was starting to raise.  
"He wanted you to continue your education! Staying at school was a reason for you to stay good!" Hermione grabbed onto Draco's arm that was by her head.  
"You call attempted murder good?"  
  
"You had no choice! He would have killed you or your family!" Hermione pulled his arm down and stepped forward to force Draco farther back against the door. "Killing Dumbledore was punishment for your father and you know it! What could you have done?" Draco just stared wide-eyed at her almost as if he was starting to break. "You may have made some mistakes but you're no killer, and your backward way of thinking was perpetuated by your parents!" She met his eyes. "You've been used as a pawn your whole life just to appease the people you need to. But you don't need to do that anymore, and you should have never needed to!. Who you are is already someone who would be accepted." Her eyes formed tears. "I accept you, and all of your baggage. I still think you're a good person, and I think you can only improve."  
  
Tears had formed in Draco's eyes as well, and instead of retreating he grabbed Hermione and pulled her into an embrace which she quickly returned. When he felt her arms wrap around him the tears started to fall. He didn't wail and neither did she, but Draco proceeded to quietly sob into her shoulder whilst small silent tears trickled down Hermione's own cheeks.  
  
The two stayed like that for a while. Eventually, when the tears ran dry for Hermione they ran out for Draco shortly after. She pulled away from him slowly and looked up to meet his eyes. It took him a second, but he eventually met her eyes and Hermione saw a mix of fear and happiness. "Everything's forgiven Draco. At least with the people who matter."  
  
"Thank you, Hermione." He said quietly.   
"We should head back to my dorm. I think we could both use some rest after tonight." Hermione smiled and Draco simply nodded.  
  
The two shut off the light and had slipped out of the closet undetected and started making their way towards the Head's dorms. Filch had seemed to move to a different floor so they had an easy and efficient time reaching it. Hermione whispered the password again and the two slipped into the dorm common room.  
  
"Y'know, scars can only hold power over you if you let them," Hermione said once they'd closed the door. Draco simply looked at her. "As long as I know who I am, my scar will never define me. And frankly, I don't think yours is a good representation of you either."  
  
Draco chuckled and walked past her to move further into the common room. "You really are quite something, Hermione." He turned back to smile at her in which she returned. "I'll keep that in mind. Thank you."  
  
"Of course." Hermione smiled. "Now c'mon. I don't want Jeremiah seeing you out here whenever he wakes up."   
"Any reason?" Draco followed her as she went to enter her room. "And will I be able to get in? I'm a boy."  
  
"They don't bother with the protection spell unless they're worried about the students doing anything." Hermione opened the door with a password and went inside with Draco following after her. She closed the door and locked it behind him.  
  
"But Jeremiah?"  
  
"Yeah, sorry. He's just kinda weird with me. He flirts one moment and then the next he doesn't want to talk with me. He's very confusing but consistently he hasn't liked me mentioning male friends, or female if I say anything that makes him uncomfortable." Hermione shrugged and moved over to the large King-sized bed. "So he's a git. But I don't really care about what he says, I just also don't want to have to deal with it if I can avoid it."  
  
"Understandable." Draco nodded and walked further into the room that was decorated with red and gold. He felt slightly awkward walking around her things. He glanced around and then looked back at her. "Do I just, sleep with you?" He asked shifting his weight.  
  
"Uh, yeah. It should be fine right?" Hermione's face flushed slightly.  
"Isn't Weasley going to get upset?" He asked.  
"Ron and I broke up six months ago. It just didn't work out." Hermione said dismissively as if she didn't want to discuss it.  
"Gotcha." Draco nods and Hermione slipped into bed before taking off her sweatshirt. Draco blushed and quickly turned away when he noticed the motion.   
  
"Relax. I have a tank top on." She laughed and he glanced back at her to see that she was telling the truth. Draco sighed before taking off his sweats and sliding in next to her in the large bed. There was plenty of space between them, but the two suddenly felt very aware of the close proximity. Hermione turned off the lights using the switch on her bed and turned away from Draco with her face red. "Well, goodnight Draco. Thanks for keeping an eye on me."  
  
"You're welcome. Sleep well, Hermione." Draco also faced away from her.

  
The two eventually fell into a slightly uneasy sleep. They weren't sure what to do exactly being in such close proximity, although they both wanted to, and so after those words, they fell asleep without saying anything more. The next morning, Draco was the first to wake up and he noticed a warm body pressed against his back and a pair of arms loosely around his waist. His face flushed and he quietly and carefully moved forward whilst lifting up Hermione's arm from around him. He then slipped out of the bed and turned back to the sleeping girl. _She looks so cute and peaceful._ He smiled before covering her back over with the duvet.

As classes were excused for the next three days, Draco _accio'd_ more clothing to him so he could properly get dressed. Then he decided it would be better to wait in Hermione's room rather than the common room. He didn't want to risk running into Jeremiah, and he especially didn't want Jeremiah to spread any rumours about the two of them but especially not about Hermione.   
  
The Slytherin student moved over to her desk and sat in her chair. He gazed over at the sleeping girl and he could feel his heart thumping. This feeling was more than a general attraction. Hermione was a good-looking witch, that much was obvious. However, that's not the only thing that attracted Draco to her, as their friendship grew over this year he started to fall for her heart and mind too. _I'm getting in too deep here._ He sighed and leaned back in the chair and looked up at the ceiling. It was bewitched to look like a clear night sky. _Must be similar to the Great Hall's spell. You're quite brilliant Hermione._  
  
He looked back at her when she turned and rolled over. Draco followed the movement with his eyes before averting his eyes. _This feels weird. I'm not her boyfriend so I feel creepy watching her sleep._ He looked down at himself before adjusting his Prefect's badge and straightening his collar. He was wearing an emerald green sweater on top of a white button-down with black jeans, white socks, and brown shoes. He felt a little too dressed up considering his normal standards. He had nice clothes so he almost always looked presentable, but something made him feel like dressing up today. _I could probably turn a few heads dressed like this.  
  
_ The Slytherin student was perfectly aware of how other's perceived him visually, and he also considered himself attractive by average standards. He used to get a few modeling offers a few years ago when his mother sent pictures of him to companies, but he turned almost all of them down. Draco doubted that anyone would bother considering him now with how his family name was associated with the Dark Lord. He'd have to do something that changed his public perception if he even wanted to consider taking up modeling. In all honesty, he did strongly consider modeling at this point in his life. He kinda liked the idea of modeling clothes and getting paid for it considering he enjoyed dressing nice already. His stream of consciousness was broken when Hermione moved again, but this time she was stirring.  
  
"Morning Granger," Draco spoke up and Hermione shifted to look in his direction. She gave him a drowsy smile before turning over to close her eyes again. Draco laughed and blushed. _She's adorable._ "Hey Granger, you're Head Girl, you should really wake up." He smiled and stood up before going back over to her. "C'mon Granger. We should go check in with Madam Pomfrey." Draco stood to the side of the bed and lightly shook her. Hermione grumbled in her half-sleep and grabbed his arm before pulling him back into the bed. Draco blushed when he fell on top of her which then caused the girl to startle awake.  
  
Hermione's face went crimson and she quickly let the boy go. Draco backed away from her and their eyes met when he got upright on his feet. "Sorry about that! I didn't mean to-I was just, I don't know." Hermione was kind of just flustered and rambling.  
  
"No no, you're good. Don't worry about it." Draco shook his head and motioned with his hands.  
The girl took a second to then look over his appearance. "You look really nice, Draco. Special occasion?"  
  
"Ah, no. Just decided to dress a little nicer." He smiled. "I mean, just trying to impress y'know?" He half-joked. Hermione sorta chuckled at him before pulling up the covers over her legs. "I can step out of the room, I just didn't want to do so without you awake. Jeremiah y'know?" He smiled before walking over to the door. "Besides, I don't like to sleep with a girl and then dip." He joked and Hermione rolled her eyes.  
  
Draco returned the gesture with another smile before slipping out of the bedroom and moving over to one of the couches in the common room. Hermione got out of bed once he left and made her way to her dresser in order to get dressed for the day. _He looked so handsome._ Hermione opened one of her drawers and glanced at the sweater that he normally wore on off-days and decided against it. _I kinda wanna dress up too when I see him looking so nice. He looked really cool._ She pondered before pulling out her black long sleeve turtleneck. It was getting close to wintertime and fall was ending, so the weather was starting to get slightly colder. She took off her clothes before getting dressed in her bra, turtleneck, brown corduroy pants, and black dress shoes. She then looked around before finding and putting on her Head Girl badge. She then picked up her wand and fixed her curly hair so that it was half-up and half down.   
  
Hermione smiled into her mirror before using magic to do some light makeup. The girl was confident enough in her appearance, but she thought makeup was kinda fun so she didn't mind putting it on sometimes. Hermione then waved her wand to clean up her room before sticking it into the pocket she had sewn into her pants that was made specifically for it. Hermione then left her room and saw Draco playing with a pillow that he was levitating.  
  
"Cute." Hermione giggled which caused Draco to blush and drop the pillow back onto the couch.  
"Staring's rude Granger, especially without the other person knowing." Draco brushed it off and stood up.  
"Mmm, so sorry." She smiled before moving over to the door. "Ready to go?"  
"Yep, time for your check-up." He took in what Hermione was wearing and smiled. "You look good, Granger."  
"Yeah, thanks. You too." Hermione stumbled over her words and he flushed.  
  
The two had made their way back to Madam Pomfrey's without any issues but with a few stares. The nurse had asked them multiple questions and the two proceeded to answer them. Draco explained the fainting spell and the nurse gave him kudos for following the proper procedure. After checking Hermione's levels and talking to her in private, she came back and explained that Hermione was most likely good to go and that they could loosen up on the 24-hour watch. Just keeping an eye out for anything strange was good enough given how Hermione was feeling today.  
  
` Hermione and Draco walked out without really talking about what their new plans were, but they both seemed to gravitate towards the Great Hall. Hermione had already noted the time and that the breakfast rush was over, so there should be fewer people in the hall right now. Draco paused when he realized what walking into the hall with Hermione meant. He wasn't harassing her and he also wasn't talking to her about anything school-related, which meant that they would be walking in together for once as friends.  
  
"Hey, Granger." Draco stopped walking and she stopped with him.  
"Yeah, what?"  
"You do realize people are going to start talking right? If we have breakfast together, I mean. We could just keep this to ourselves."  
  
Hermione paused to think over what he was saying. Draco was right in that them being seen together would make people talk, and that would lead to countless rumours, and no doubt nasty things said about both of them. Most rumours probably surrounding that the former-hero Hermione Granger is buddy-buddy with former-Deatheater Draco Malfoy. Normally Hermione went above out-of-her-way to avoid all of the talking and the gossip, she'd just been through so much and never wanted to bother with the childish negativity again. But for some reason, at this moment she really could care less about what other people thought of her.   
  
"As much as I'd like to keep you to myself Malfoy, you're my friend. And I don't care what people have to say about that." Hermione smiled and nudged him with her shoulder. "Let them talk."   
  
Draco felt a faint blush creep onto his cheeks and he felt himself grinning at her response. "Alright. Fair, but where do we sit?" The two took a moment to ponder who could possibly be at the House tables still. "Gryffindor. Got it." They both smiled and nodded before turning back and starting towards the Great Hall once again. When they entered there were maybe 10 other students scattered around the tables. Not one of the students looked up, however, as half of them were buried in a book and the other half talking to a friend or eating quietly.   
  
The two sat down towards the middle of the table and dishes from the morning's breakfast appeared in front of them. The two ate in mostly silence, but as much as you normally would when eating a meal. Everything was going well and no one had noticed them until Blaise Zambini sat down next to Draco and made a fuss.  
  
"There you are! I haven't seen you since practice yesterday!" Blaise wrapped his arm around Draco's shoulders and the blonde shoved him off.  
"Keep it down Blaise, you don't need to tell the world," Draco grumbled.  
"Ah, I see." The dark-brunette rolled his eyes and turned to Hermione. "And how are you doing? Sorry about that bludger. The twins are gits."  
  
Hermione seemed taken aback that the Slytherin was even talking to her, but she had also noticed that out of all of the Slytherins in her year, Blaise was consistently one of the nicest. He mainly joked and messed around with people from other houses, but when it came to the bullying he didn't like to stick around or participate. "Oh, I'm okay. Madam Pomfrey had Draco watching over me in case any repercussions came up."  
  
"Ah, so you were babysitting our Head Girl." Blaise grinned and slapped Draco on the back. "That's my favourite Prefect!"  
"Oh please." Draco rolled his eyes and pushed the man away again. "I'm the only Prefect who will even talk to you, shut up."  
"Mmm. Maybe so, but the Head Girl talked to me!" Blaise had gotten up and sat next to Hermione before pulling her into him. "I think that says loads."  
  
Draco frowned and pulled her away from him before letting her go. "Hands off Granger, Blaise." Hermione couldn't help but blush at how protective Draco seemed to be. She wasn't exactly fond of the grabbing and pulling, but she'd let it slide considering he only did it to get her away from Blaise.  
  
"What's the issue Draco?" Blaise leaned towards him on the table. "Something wrong?"  
"Blaise..." Draco growled before standing up.   
"Relax mate." Blaise stood up but backed off. "I'm just teasing. You know I'd never say anything."  
"You sure push the limits though." He sighed before sitting back down.  
  
Hermione looked at the two of them in confusion. _I'm definitely missing something here, but I really don't know what._ "Hey Draco, are you okay?" She turned to him with a look of worry. Draco's worries on the other hand seemed to diminish extensively when he met Hermione's eyes. She always had a way of managing to get his guard down when he wasn't paying attention.  
  
He returned her question with a small smile that Blaise definitely noticed. "Yeah, I'm okay."  
  
"I just get a little carried away sometimes with the teasing. It's my biggest flaw. Arguably my only one." Blaise shrugged and sat back down.  
"Yeah, sure." Draco rolled his eyes.  
  
Hermione laughed at the two. "You guys really care about each other don't you?"  
  
"Oh please, Granger. We're men, we'd never admit to that." Blaise laughed. Draco merely rolled his eyes but smiled. "But yeah, I think he's the only person who'd be willing to put up with me. I'd say that it goes vice versa as well, but it seems like you put up with him rather well." He grinned and Hermione felt her stomach do a nervous flip. _What's he implying?_  
  
"Miss Granger." The three turned at an older female voice from the other side of the room. Hermione stood as Madam Hooch approached her. "Headmistress McGonagall wanted to pass on the message that Potter and Weasley are here today. They wanted to surprise you." She came up to them to speak quieter. "They're up by Barnaba's tapestry. I assume you know where that is." She winked. "Potter's too much of a celebrity to keep in the public eye, so we'll look the other way this time." She smiled before nodding and heading off.  
  
"Well, I believe it's my turn to dip. Have fun with your old pals Granger." Blaise tipped his finger off his forehead as if he was tipping a hat before standing up and leaving. Hermione seemed slightly taken aback but she only waved after him. _Is he trying to test me or something?  
  
_"I guess we separate here then." Draco also stood up and bowed as if he was about to leave.  
"Wait, why?" Hermione turned to him.  
"You're going to go see your friends, right? And you said it yourself Granger, they don't particularly like me very much."  
"So what? We're friends now too, aren't we?"  
"Granger-" She interrupted him.  
"And besides. The twenty-four hours aren't up. You still have to stay by my side." She grinned and Draco rolled his eyes but smiled.  
  
She kept staring up again and Draco simply shook his head and turned on the heel. "Alright, you got me. Cmon, we better not leave them waiting." Hermione took a second to register what he said before smiling again and catching up to the walking man.  
  


  
  
  
The two had made their way up to the seventh floor whilst avoiding as many crowds as possible, so it took slightly longer than it should have. But nonetheless, they had arrived with only receiving a couple of stares and whispers. The two didn't care necessarily, but avoiding the attention was still the preferable option. The two followed normal procedures by the tapestry of Barnabas and a crisp oak door appeared on the wall. They paused and Draco looked towards Hermione who suddenly seemed very nervous.   
  
"You good, Granger?" Draco tilted his head.  
"Yeah, just kinda nervous." Hermione shrugged.  
"Any reason in particular?"  
"Well... Harry and I get along great, but I haven't been responding to Ron's letters for awhile. He's just been writing some stuff I don't really want to reply to."  
  
"Gotcha." Draco nodded and took a second to think. He then took his wand from his pants pocket to slip it into his sleeve. "Don't worry. If anything goes wrong, you've got me and Harry." He smiled and nudged her in an effort to reassure her.  
  
Hermione smiled at the gesture. "Thank you." She turned back to the door and seemed to hype herself up before reaching forward and grabbing the door handle. Draco kept behind her as she opened the door and the two walked in together.  
  
The room the two walked into was wide and covered in red and gold rugs. In fact, Draco realized that it looked of similar dressings to Hermione's side of her common room and her bedroom. Hermione recognized it as almost an exact replica of the Gryffindor common room. When they both spotted Harry and Ron, the boys were sitting in front of the unlit fireplace playing exploding snap. The two were so focused that they hadn't noticed the two enter. It wasn't until they had approached them and reached the couches, that Hermione mocked Umbridge's 'ahem' before the two turned to her.  
  
"Hermione!" Harry and Ron both exclaimed before getting to their feet. In response, two cards exploded by their feet which took them by surprise. But the two quickly recovered and Harry moved over to Hermione for a hug. Whereas Ron looked like he wanted to hug her but he held back, something Hermione was grateful for. It was only when Harry pulled back that the other men realized Draco was there at all.  
  
"Malfoy" Ron drew his wand in an instant and Draco in return pointed his own at the ginger. Harry however was on guard but with his wand still in his pocket. "What are you doing here?"  
  
"Ron, do you honestly think he's here to hurt any of us?" Hermione rolled her eyes.  
"C'mon Weasley, listen to Granger." Draco kept his wand up.  
  
Ron glared at Draco before glancing at Hermione and then at Harry. Harry just shrugged and then shook his head. "Mate, it's not like he's here on accident." Ron's glare then returned to Draco before he lowered his wand which in turn Draco lowered his as well. "So what's he doing here, Hermione?" Harry asked relatively calmly. Harry had already matured a lot after the war, but he was also just quick to avoid confrontation as he'd had too much of that for a lifetime. You'd think his natural disposition to conflict would make being an Auror hard on him, but it actually means a lot less paperwork and _obliviate_ spells. Since Harry joined, there's been a lot more peaceful captures and surrenders than before.  
  
"You brought him here?" Ron asked angrily.  
"How else would he have known? It's not like it's public knowledge that we're here." Harry rolled his eyes and Ron shot him a look.  
  
"I brought him because he's my friend." Hermione stood her ground. Harry looked surprised but Ron looked furious.  
"Your _friend_?" Since when are you friends with that Death Eater!" He yelled.  
"He's not a Death Eater!" She fumed. "He hardly ever was!" She shouted back at him.  
  
Draco seemed unbothered by the situation for the most part, but he noticed that Harry was really uncomfortable. Harry looked back at Hermione and then to Draco. He trusted Hermione with his life, which also meant he trusted her judgment. Harry knew that Draco had changed after the war, and even he had seen Draco seemingly starting to change before the war was even over. As far as Harry was concerned Draco could be a different person by this point, or at least a better one. However, all of this wasn't Harry's biggest concern right now, but he was sure how exactly to handle this. Harry made sure to keep his wand at-the-ready, and did his best to position himself more to the front of Ron rather than beside him. Ron wasn't all that close yet, but he'd do his best to prevent it.  
  
"Then have him roll up his sleeve! Have him show me a blank left arm and I'll believe it!" Ron glared at her and then at Draco. Draco bristled in his shoes but he remained silent. He wasn't going to let Ron get to him.  
  
"Ron you're being ridiculous! This is exactly why I don't return your letters!"  
"Why? Because I care about your safety!" His anger rose.  
"Because you have the emotional control of a child and consistently jump to conclusions!" She shouted.  
  
"C'mon Granger, give him a break. We knew this would happen." Draco put his wand in his pocket.  
"You stay out of this!" Ron raised his wand again but this time Harry drew and _expelliarmus'd_ it away. "Harry!" He turned on his friend and Harry shrugged.  
  
"Mate, you're overreacting. His wand is away and you're the one that started yelling." Harry had moved his way between Ron and Hermione. "There's really no need for the raised voices." He gave Ron a pointed look in which Ron received only to frown. Harry moved over to the couch to sit. "C'mon, there's a lot to catch up on." Harry motioned for Ron to come and sit and gestured for Hermione and Draco to sit as well. "We're not enemies anymore, so take a seat." Hermione had a grateful smile on her face before moving over to take a seat on the couch opposite of them. Draco followed after her but didn't sit as close as he'd like to.  
  
Ron grumbled and moved over to pick up his wand from where Harry had let it fall before grumbling even more and moving over to where Harry was seated. He crossed his arms and proceeded to glare at Draco from the opposite side. Draco rolled his eyes-Ron scoffed at this-and moved his gaze from Ron to Harry. Harry then started a conversation with Hermione in which she avidly enjoyed and contributed to. Harry even talked to Draco a bit to his own surprise and was relieved that the man had at least given him a chance. Hermione seemed pleased by this as well whereas Ron was still fuming in his seat.  
  
"Is there any big reason why you two came?" Hermione asked  
  
"Well, Ron's been trying to convince me to visit for a while." He pointedly looked at Ron before turning back. Ron was blushing. "But I was starting to miss you too, so this time I offered and he jumped at the opportunity. It's nice that Hogwarts decided to give us the common room." He gestured to the Room of Requirement. "It's been a while since I was able to enjoy the space, let alone be allowed in it." The two shared a laugh and Hermione just tried to ignore Ron's brooding energy.  
  
"Well, I'm glad you came." Hermione smiled. "It's been a lot different without you two around."  
"Obviously. When did you two become friends then?" Ron asked. "You too look rather cozy. You never dressed like that before."  
  
"Pretty recently." Hermione's smile only faltered a little before it became wider when talking about Draco. She seemed to completely ignore his other comment and focus on the question. "Slughorn has us paired up as partners, so we work together a lot." She shrugged and glanced at Draco. "We didn't really solidify our relationship as friends until yesterday though."  
  
"And why's that?" Ron asked again.  
  
Draco glanced at her before crossing his arms in a subconscious move to comfort himself. Hermione glanced at him as well and Ron seemed to pick up on the looks and his chest puffed out a bit. Hermione rolled her eyes. "There was an accident on the Quidditch field. I was reading my book and got hit by a bludger. And before you start, Draco's not even on the team anymore. He was watching Blaise Zambini practice and it was these two fifth years that did it. Draco's the one who saved me."  
  
"I thought you said you got hit," Ron growled.  
  
"And it would have been worse if he hadn't warned me. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't have been able to block it. Now, will you drop this hardly passive, passive-aggressive attitude?" She snapped at him. "I'm tired of it. If you're still my friend you should learn to accept that Draco is too."  
  
"You're calling him _Draco_?" He sneered.  
"Yes. And sometimes he calls me Hermione. He's changed. You can rather get over that, keep your mouth shut, or leave." She glared at him.  
  
"You don't get to tell me to keep my mouth shut, 'Mione!" Ron moved over to her and Draco and Harry shot up on their feet. "This is supposed to be the other way around! You don't get to talk to me like this! You should know your place by now!" Ron sneered quietly at her and Draco noticed a change in Hermione's demeanor, she almost seemed frozen but shaken at the same time.  
  
"T-that's not how it is anymore!" Hermione's voice shook but she tried to push him away. "I told you before that I'm not doing that anymore!" She yelled. It wasn't until Ron seemed to raise his arm Draco ran to block Hermione from him. Ron was taken aback and backed up growling, but Harry had also grabbed his arm and yanked him backward.  
  
"Get out of the way, Malfoy. This doesn't concern you." Ron threw off Harry's hands on his arm.  
  
"I'm not going to allow you to yell at Hermione anymore. She said she's done, so whatever you said to her, you're going to drop it and back off." Draco stood his ground and he felt Hermione shrink behind him. "And I better have seen your next action wrong, because if not we're going to have a serious issue here." Draco glared daggers at him.  
  
Ron looked livid, but he paused and scoffed whilst rolling his eyes. "Whatever." Ron glared at Draco one last time. "C'mon Harry, let's go." He stood up and started towards the door. "I can't stand her ungrateful attitude anymore."  
  
"Are you serious, Ron? What the hell was that? _Her_ ungrateful attitude? Are you serious mate?" Harry looked at him in shock but Ron stomped away. When there was no response for the ginger Harry let out a sigh. "Are you bloody..." He shook his head before turning back around. "Well, I was enjoying my time talking with Hermione and Mal-Draco." Harry glanced awkwardly at Draco before facing Ron again. "You can head out if you want, but Hermione and I aren't the ones with the issue here. Draco doesn't seem like he has an issue either beside you acting like a real git right now." Harry crossed his arms. "You're the only one who's upset with this Ron and you're taking it out on Hermione. Stop blaming her for being willing to forgive someone who out of the both of you, has arguably more of a reason not to forgive." Harry was getting angry now. "I trust Hermione, and if she's found that Draco isn't the same kid that called her 'Mudblood' all these years, then I trust her judgment. She's not here to forgive easily and you know that deep in your heart." He scoffed. "That's probably why you're so peeved that she's with him in the first place. You're jealous."  
  
Ron was scarlet with anger. He glared at Harry but didn't say anything because Harry was only speaking Ron's truth. He took a moment before scoffing. "Yeah, whatever. See ya later Harry." He turned and then left. The three watched him leave and Harry and Hermione sighed whilst Draco rolled his eyes.  
  
"Sorry about him." Harry apologized and turned to Draco. "He's got some anger issues he's been working on. Hermione, are you okay?"  
  
Draco finally turned around to see Hermione curled into herself, she seemed really shaken for that amount of yelling. "Hey?" Draco knelt down so he was below her level and touched his hand to her leg. When Hermione flinched his eyes narrowed. "Hermione, you're okay. It's just me and Harry now. Ron's gone." Hermione took a moment before she looked at him and seemed to calm down. She uncurled and then sat silently on the couch, staring at her hands.  
  
"Did you know about this?" Draco asked Harry.  
  
"No, I mean, yes? I had my suspicions but Hermione didn't really talk to me about it. I just noticed that she got better when they broke up and worse when she was around him after." Harry sighed. Hermione was quiet and not saying anything, instead, she just continued to stare at her hands. "After they broke up, I looked back and realized what had been going on. To my knowledge, there were only a few, um, altercations? To put it lightly, at least. But, as far as I could tell it was mainly verbal."  
  
"And you let him see her?" Draco felt fury rise in him.  
  
"It's been six months and they've still been trying to be friends. Ron's been going to anger-management although that's helping very little, especially when it comes to Hermione. I wanted to check up on her in person and McGonagal wanted to see us both. I hoped that with me there, nothing would happen if I could keep sensitive subjects away."  
  
"But then I was here, is that it?" Draco asked.  
"Yeah, that's it." Harry nodded.  
"I hope you know to keep him away for a while now."  
"Trust me, it's noted." Harry ran a hand through his hair.  
"I didn't think you knew," Hermione spoke up and the two turned to look at her.  
"Yeah, not during I didn't. I had passing thoughts but, I just never expected...everything." Harry's voice was filled with guilt. "I'm sorry, Hermione."  
  
"Thanks, Harry, but unfortunately as much as I'd love to get into my string of complicated thoughts and emotions regarding Ron and me, I don't." She gave a small smile and reached out to squeeze the hand that Draco still had on her leg.   
  
"It's alright, Hermione. If and when you're ready to talk, I'm here." Harry and Hermione shared a small smile. "I mean, I guess I should probably go anyways. Sorry, I could only stay a few hours, the Ministry is loaded with work right now. I also gotta go take care of him, obviously. He's not getting away with anything on my watch." Harry smiled but seemed to have a realization before looking at Draco. "Hey Draco, I probably shouldn't be telling you this, but tell your father to cut some of his darker ties. He's narrowly escaping trouble as it is, and I'd hate to put another person into Azkaban." It almost came as a threat, but Hermione had briefly mentioned Sirius before and so had his Aunt Bella. Harry's relationship with Sirius was close, and because of that, he knew Harry didn't particularly like Azkaban as he saw it as a punishment worse than death.  
  
Draco took a second to take in the information before shrugging. "I'll mention it to my mother, but father and I aren't really on great terms right now." He gave Harry a small smile. "However, thanks for the concern."  
  
Harry shrugged and nodded in turn. He then turned back to Hermione who gave him a bone-crushing hug. Draco smiled as he watched the girl, he couldn't help but get lost in her bouncy locks. Hermione then let the man go and Harry turned to Draco before the two exchanged a semi-awkward handshake. Draco understood that they weren't friends, but instead civil acquaintances which worked just fine for the both of them.  
  
"Alright then. Can you make it out without being seen?" Hermione asked as Harry moved towards the door.  
  
Harry simply laughed before pulling a cloak out of his pocket. Draco's eyes widened in realization and Harry caught the action. "Yeah, it's the same one." He said to Draco and the blonde shifted uncomfortably.  
  
"Sorry about that." Draco apologized.  
  
"No damage mate. I kinda deserved it for spying on you." Harry shrugged before slipping the cloak on. Hermione looked between the two of them in confusion.  
"Wait, what are you talking about?" She asked.  
"You didn't tell her?" Draco asked in surprise.  
  
Harry just shrugged and grinned. There was a short pause before the two shared a genuine laugh and Hermione beamed at them. A thought then came to Hermione and she paused. "Hey Harry, can I ask you something before you go?" Hermione moved and grabbed Harry's invisible arm and pulled him towards the door and away from Draco. Draco smiled and just half-watched them and half fiddled where he stood.  
  
"Hey Harry, I have a really important question." Hermione faced him by the door.  
"Hermione, you don't need my blessing." Harry smiled down at her.  
"Huh? Harry, what are you talking about?"  
Harry laughed and smiled. "I can see the way you talk and look at him."  
Hermione's face was scarlet. _Sure, this may have been what I was going to talk about, but c'mon!_ "Y-you're not upset?"  
  
Harry chuckled and took one of her hands and squeezed it. "No, I'm not upset. I will be honest; I was shocked that you had become friends with Malfo-Draco. But, I know how hard it is for you to trust people and especially make friends. So when I saw you with Draco, I was kinda shocked that you two were getting along, especially after everything." He squeezed her hand again before letting it go. "Whether or not I approved also shouldn't have mattered. If you trust him, and he makes you happy, who am I to stand in the way of that? Especially when I failed to help you before."  
  
"Harry, that's not your fault."  
  
"I know, but it doesn't stop me from feeling guilty about not doing anything sooner." He gave her a small smile. "Besides, if Draco sticks around long enough, I'm sure any of the baggage we still have will go away too. So, you don't have to worry about any of that." He glanced over at the blonde who was fiddling with his wand and then turned back to Hermione. "He seems to be a lot different than the boy we knew before, even I can see that much just by looking at him." Hermione beamed up at him and hugged him hard. Harry stumbled back but then returned the hug. Draco had glanced over and felt a little jealous and just turned away, he was overreacting and he knew it.  
  
"Thanks, Harry." Hermione let go and stepped back.  
  
"Well, this is where I leave you. Stay safe you two!" Harry smiled before disappearing under the cloak. His hand stuck out and waved and Draco waved back in return. Then the door opened and shut on its own and the two were left alone.  
  
The Slytherin suddenly became strongly aware of Hermione's presence again and felt a wave of nerves wash over him. It was much easier to keep up a face when it was more than just the two of them. Hermione walked over from where she was and met Draco where he was waiting. The two shared an awkward silence or a bit before Draco did an awkward fake cough.  
  
"Uh, Harry mentioned earlier that this is what the Gryffindor common room looks like?" Draco took the moment to escape her proximity as his nerves were everywhere at the moment. He started looking around and then became genuinely invested in the space.  
  
"Yeah, it's pretty much the exact same. But the staircases and doors to the actual dorms aren't here." Hermione nodded and watched him move around the room. She couldn't help but admire his physique as he moved around the room. _What an ass._ Hermione choked on air at the thought that went through her mind.  
  
"Hey, you okay?" Draco asked and started towards her.  
"I'm good! I'm great! Just, choked on dust or something." She tried to laugh it off. _Get ahold of yourself._  
  
_I'd rather you choke on something else._ Draco flushed red and also coughed just as Hermione did. _What the bloody hell is wrong with me!_ It was then Hermione's turn to be concerned by Draco waved her away. "It's good, you're just contagious, that's all."   
  
Hermione laughed and moved over to pat his back. "It must be my good looks." She joked.  
"Yeah, something like that." He stopped coughing and turned to look at her. The two shared a long, slow, moment.   
  
"Hey Draco-" Hermione was cut off when the room started to shake around them. The two both drew their wands and faced back-to-back when the room seemed to shrink and close in. "Run!" Hermione and Draco both ran towards the door but Hermione tripped as the floor started moving as well. Draco stumbled but he was close enough where he was able to stop himself on the wall.  
  
"Hermione!" Draco turned to her getting up and running towards him. They both got pushed towards the door by the walls closing in now when everything stopped and the lights went off. "What?" Draco recognized this situation, reached up, and pulled the string above their heads. "We're in the closet again."  
  
"Yeah, except it feels a lot smaller this time," Hermione mumbled from Draco's chest. It was his first time to notice but Hermione was right. There was hardly enough room for them to move at all. The room was hardly even a closet it was so small as Hermione's back and Draco's were pressed against the walls and door, but also pushed right into each other.  
  
"Can you reach around me to open the door? I don't think I can." Draco's arm didn't have much movement and was kinda stuck on the plane it had moved on.  
  
"Yeah, lemme try." Hermione reached under his arm and reached for the doorknob and Draco blushed at the close proximity. They were both red this entire time, but he didn't realize that it could get worse. Before Hermione could reach the doorknob, however, the door opened and Draco fell onto his back with Hermione following on top of him.   
  
"Ow, what the hell?" Draco had bumped his head on the way down but when he opened his eyes he says Blaise Zambini smiling down at him.  
"Hey mate! So this is where you'd been?" He chuckled.  
  
Hermione blushed and rushed off of Draco once she realized she had partially straddled him. Draco felt her move and he stood grumbling. "Hey, Blaise. How'd you find us?" He asked and Hermione just stood red behind Draco.  
  
"Oh, well if you remember Hooch said where you were. It had been a bit so I thought I'd run by. I asked for a room that would embarrass you two, and the room seems to have delivered!"  
  
"So you're the one who caused the room to shift and almost crush us?" Draco growled.  
"Yes! But it didn't!" He smiled and Draco rubbed his temples with his fingers.   
Draco chuckled. "Blaise, you are a piece of work." He turned around to check on Hermione. "You good?"  
  
Hermione nodded. "I'm okay. Now that the rush of adrenaline is over."  
"How's your head doing?" Draco asked.  
"Oh shit, I forgot about that," Blaise exclaimed.  
"Yeah, no shit mate." Draco rolled his eyes.  
"I'm okay, it's all good. My head's perfectly okay." Hermione smiled.  
"Good." Draco smiled at her and Blaise suddenly had a realization.   
  
"Hey, I need y'all to do something for me." Blaise grabbed them both and pulled them to the end of the hallway. "Wait here." Blaise then left and proceeded to run back and forth along the hallway three times before going back over to them and pulling them back. "Alright. Here we go." A new crimson door had appeared on the wall and Blaise moved over to open it. "C'mon, I need you guys to go in here, trust me."   
  
"What are you even talking about?" Draco rolled his eyes but was pushed forward into the room before falling forward onto his knees and hands. "Blaise!" Draco turned to see Hermione being pushed in much more gently, and then the door shutting behind them. They both heard a loud 'lock!' and then ran to the door. "It won't open! Blaise! What the hell?" Draco pulled on the doorknob to no avail.  
  
Hermione turned around to look at the new space they had been thrust into. There were rose petals scattered around a single red couch in the middle of the room. The walls were black but they almost looked like they went on forever with the mist enchantment that seemed to be cast on them. When Hermione went to touch the wall, however, she could feel cold wood under her fingertips. She looked up and saw a gorgeous sapphire sky beaming down at them with stars and a large full moon. Faint greyish-white clouds floated overhead.  
  
At this point, Draco had stopped fumbling and was exploring the room as well. When he stepped on the rose petals they seemed to be bewitched so they could never be trampled as they all seemed like he hardly touched them at all. Draco moved towards the couch and saw a single white card on the pillow at the end. He picked it up and opened the small card. It read:  
  
_**Very few have found this place,  
Only outsiders can give you this space.  
The outcome however is still up to you,  
If you say what you feel is true.**  
  
_"Hey, Hermione!" Draco called out to where she was playing with the mist that had collected at the floor next to the walls of the room. She moved over to him and quickly noticed the card in his hands. "I found this. I think it's our way of getting out of here." Draco passed her the card and she read over it a few times before a blush rose to her cheeks. She then closed it and sat down on the couch. "What? Did you figure it out already?" Hermione simply nodded and passed the card back to him. He looked at her in confusion before rereading the note a few times and then coming to a realization of his own.  
  
"So?" Hermione's voice was even.  
  
Draco moved to sit beside her as the couch was only so big. "I think I may have figured it out. We need to reveal something that we've each been holding back, and it's something specific. That's the only way the door will unlock and we can get out of the room."  
  
"That's what I figured as well." Hermione nodded and crossed her arms, thinking. "You first."   
  
Draco sighed and looked up at the star-lit ceiling. There was a long moment before he said anything at all. "When I was at Hogwarts before the war, I was only ever jealous of Harry Potter. He had kind friends who liked him because he was a good person, and I mostly had bad friends who liked me because of my money or to be in good standing with my family." He finished and his face was slightly red. "Alright then, go ahead." He smiled and took a seat on the couch.  
  
Hermione flushed as this wasn't what she was expecting to hear. _Draco must have interpreted it differently. I kinda hope his way works though, this seems too sudden for me to admit right now._ She nodded and stood up before taking a few steps forward and looking up at the ceiling as well. Hermione was sure this wasn't necessary for the words to work, but she found looking at the stars comforting whilst preparing to say something. But before she did she paused and turned back to Draco. "Hey, did you really mean all that? You were just jealous of Harry?"  
  
Draco shrugged but nodded. "Yeah, it's all true. You guys were the Wonder Trio of the school by second-year. Your friendship was just so genuine that it kinda made me sick. Over the years it got worse because I wondered if I'd ever had a true and genuine friendship like that." He smiled sadly but he still seemed content. "Then I met Blaise, and I realized that even someone like me can have an honest friendship." Draco's face was pink with embarrassment for how honest he was being, but he felt comfortable sharing this information with Hermione.   
  
"That's really sad and really sweet at the same time." Hermione smiled sadly at him.  
"Yeah, I suppose so. But, I'm the happiest I've ever been, right now." He smiled up at her and Hermione felt her stomach flutter.  
  
She turned away from him before looking back up at the ceiling. _Should I just go ahead and say it?_ Hermione took in a breath. "I lied when I said that this scar doesn't really get to me anymore." She felt Draco shift in his seat but she kept speaking. "Sometimes, I'll dream of being back in the Manor again, and everything is flashing back to me. It happens when I look at it sometimes as well. I still forgive Draco, though. He helped us through the time, and he's often one of the saviors in my dreams." Hermione paused. "I just lied when I said it's completely in the past. It all still gets to me sometimes." Hermione felt like she had finished and so she looked down at her hands. She could feel Draco's eyes on her back and could practically hear the thoughts running through his head. "It's not your fault." She turned to meet his eyes. "I stand by that."  
  
Draco just stared at her with a mix of emotions across his face. She wasn't sure how exactly he was feeling but he didn't really know himself either. Everything was a mix of guilt but with the knowledge that he was forgiven and he shouldn't feel guilty in the first place. Draco also wasn't sure if he was happier that Hermione was being honest about this, because at least before there was a semblance that she was able to be okay now.   
  
"I'm gonna go check the door." Hermione murmured quietly before moving away from him and walking towards the door. Draco felt the cold air replace her spot and he looked up to see her trying the doorknob again. "It didn't work." Hermione walked back and sat next to him on the couch. "Well, what now?" Hermione wasn't sure how to break him out of his thoughts, so she took his hand in hers and squeezed it. "Hey. It's okay." She gave him a small smile and he seemed to snap out of it when she touched his hand. Draco looked up and met her eyes, the two shared a moment before Hermione smiled and pulled her hand away. "Well, what now? The confessions didn't work before, so it's gotta be something else." Hermione was still pretty sure she knew the right answer, but she wasn't prepared to deal with the embarrassment of rejection especially after they had just solidified their friendship.  
  
"I'm not sure." Draco took the card in his hands again and read it over again. Draco's face flushed red and he put the card down before running over to the door and slamming on it. "Blaise! What did you do?" He kept pulling at the doorknob and Hermione felt her cheeks grow hot. _I think he knows what it means now._ Draco kept pulling but he heard nothing from the other side. "It must be sound-proof," Draco mumbled before pushing away from the door in frustration.  
  
"So I guess we're stuck in here then?" Hermione called to him.  
  
Draco turned to her and took in the sight of her sitting on the couch, surrounded by petals, underneath the blue star-lit sky. For a moment time sat still as she was there smiling at him. It was nothing more than the sight of the pretty girl that he had fallen for, but for Draco, it was like being bathed in the summer sun in an empty field. He approached her and Hermione still had her smile plastered on her face.   
  
"You alright, Draco?" Hermione looked up at him.  
"Uh, yeah." He merely nodded.  
"So, are we stuck here then?" She asked again.  
He flushed just slightly. "So it appears to be." He smiled before sitting down closer to her, daring to close the space that was now reduced to inches.  
  
Hermione felt the shift in aura with the shift of proximity and she wasn't sure whether to lean into it or back away. Well, it was less of doing the thing she wanted to do versus the thing she should. Hermione moved towards the edge of the couch just slightly to get some more space as it's what she thought was appropriate, but Draco followed after her. She met his eyes when she turned to face him.  
  
"What are you doing?"  
"Why? What's wrong?" Draco moved his hand to the other side of her thighs and leaned forward which cause Hermione to lean back.  
"I get the fake-flirty thing we've been doing but this is too far." Hermione backed away until she reached the end on the couch.  
  
Draco's face fell slightly. _Maybe I've been reading this wrong._ "I'm sorry, Hermione. I didn't mean to." He backed away from her and she felt a coldness in his place as he moved to the far end of the couch. His reaction to her words made her realize why he was so flustered about the card. _He likes me too.  
  
_"Draco." Hermione moved forward and copied his movements from before, putting her hand on the other side of his thighs. "I know what the room wants us to say." Draco seemed confused at her actions but he didn't pull away. She sat back and moved her hand to Draco's thigh that was closest to her and looked up. "I like Draco Malfoy." The man's eyes widened in response before he leaned back into Hermione. She met his eyes at his movement.  
  
"And I like Hermione Granger." Draco smiled and there was a loud unlocking noise but the two were too focused on each other to care. Draco carefully moved his hand to cup the side of Hermione's face before leaning in slowly to kiss her. He wanted to give her plenty of opportunity to back away if she wanted to, but Hermione leaned forward as well. The two share a soft and gentle kiss as if it were their first in their lifetime. It was sweet, gentle, and tender. The two pulled away slowly with smiles plastered on their faces.  
  
"And here I was worried you would never figure out what the card meant." Hermione laughed.  
"I wondered if you knew the whole time." He moved his hand to hold hers.  
"I didn't feel like sharing at the time."  
"Well, I'm glad you do now."

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! This story has been a while in the making! I hope you enjoyed it!


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